The coastline of the Canadian Beaufort Sea is composed of unconsolidated but ice-bonded sediments, including mud, sand, gravel, and glacial diamict. Coastal landforms include low-angle tundra slopes gradually being drowned by the encroaching sea, deltas, tidal flats, supratidal marshes, beaches and barriers, lagoons, and complex embayments formed by breaching of thermokarst lake basins. Cliffs are the dominant coastal landform, representing 52% of the shoreline. Cliff erosion processes include gullying, basal wave-cut niche development, shallow sloughing, block failures, and retrogressive thaw failures.

Erosional landforms comprise 63% of the coast and even where accretional landforms occur there is evidence that they are currently retreating. Typical coastal retreat rates vary from less than 1 m per year to as much as 20 m per year. More than 10 m of cliff erosion can occur in a single storm. The most rapid rates of coastal change occur along the very low Mackenzie delta shoreline and in areas of ice-rich cliffs.

Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk

The Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk was established in 1934 by the Hudson's Bay Company as a trans-shipment point for barge freight from the Mackenzie River. The harbour is 20-30 m deep in places and is the best harbour between Herschel Island to the west and Cape Bathurst to the east. It had a population of about 1000 people as of 1994 and it is the only permanent settlement on the Canadian Beaufort Sea coast. The Hamlet is located on a small peninsula along the Tuktoyaktuk Peninsula on the eastern shore of Kugmallit Bay. Surficial sediments in the region consist of glacio-fluvial sand and gravel capped by thin diamicts. It is in the zone of continuous permafrost and massive ice in the form of intra-sedimental sills, wedges and pingos is common. Sea-level is rising at a rate of about 2.5 mm/a and consequently, much of the coast is erosional; typical long-term (multi-decadal) retreat rates of unlithified coastal bluffs are on the order of 1-2 m/a. Locally, aggradational features (spits and bars) are formed by transport of eroded sand and gravel. Spits on both ends flank the peninsula on which the Hamlet is located.

Recent research has established the importance of fall storms, ice edge position and accompanying storm surges in the rapid retreat of permafrost-affected unlithified coasts. Severe storms and very little sea ice in 1944, 1970 and 1993 resulted in major episodes of erosion. The curling rink was undermined and destroyed in the 1980s and the school was closed and torn down in the 1990s. Climate change may increase the frequency of damaging storms because of decreases in the amount of sea ice in the area during the summer and possible changes in storm intensity or frequency. Rising sea level will have long term impacts as well.